


It's Not a Vice If I'm Indulging You

by supremesapphic (StormcageSweetie)



Category: Carol (2015), The Price of Salt - Patricia Highsmith
Genre: Based on a Tumblr Post, Canon Gay Relationship, F/F, Fluffy Ending, Headcanon, Light Dom/sub, Red Lace, Smut, Valentine's Day, but very very light, holiday sex, sugar momma aird
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-26
Updated: 2016-07-26
Packaged: 2018-07-26 20:33:26
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,800
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7589080
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StormcageSweetie/pseuds/supremesapphic
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Oh but darling…”  She slid her hand down to squeeze Therese's arm. “The trouble is, I like to indulge you.” Carol breathed out. “It’s not a vice if I’m indulging you.” Her grip on Therese’s arm shifted, her fingernails trailing down the pale skin to her hand and leaving goosebumps in their wake. “And I would particularly like to see you in it.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	It's Not a Vice If I'm Indulging You

**Author's Note:**

> Well, that took long enough. I started this way back in the beginning of February and I had promised to post it on Valentine's Day. I thought it was just gonna be a quick smutty little thing, but months passed and suddenly I found myself in front of a 16 page document that I had been pouring my soul into, and my tumblr followers actually cared enough to regularly check in to make sure I hadn't abandoned it.   
> This truly has been a labor of love, guys. All the support (not to mention patience) on tumblr is what has motivated me to not give up on this like I have with so many other fics. I feel a deep connection to these characters and this work has become important to me. I'm honored that it's so important to other people too. Thanks.

$100. Therese's eyes went wide. How could the red lacy thing cost so much, especially with so little fabric. 

There was luxury, she thought, and then there was extravagance. Overindulgence. 

Still, she didn't own anything like it. The red garter belt with lacy lingerie to create a complete ensemble was nothing short of bold. Therese had always considered herself, or at least tried to be, bold. 

It wasn’t the sort of thing she could see herself wearing, and something about that fact made her want it just a little bit more.

And besides, nobody would see it. It would be something for herself, a private gift and pleasant secret that she didn’t have to do much at all with. Secrets had become something of an art, Therese thought, especially recently. She glanced up at Carol, whose luminescent eyes she could feel burning a hole through her from across the Ladies Intimates section. So much like their first meeting it almost seemed a bit of a joke- a little secret that they didn't have to do much at all with. 

 

Secrets were what women traded in, surely. 

 

She was smiling at Therese, the certain soft smile that Carol saved just for her. Her smile was like her eyes- varied and incredibly deep at times, yet something about it was constant and made Therese feel steadied. That smile was security throughout every turn their lives took, pulling them back together when they stretched to what always felt like the far side of infinity. 

Therese looked back down at the garment in her hand, embarrassed suddenly. It would be silly to spend so much money on something like that. 

She put it back down on the table hastily, struggling to return it to the state she had found it in but failing to recreate the expertly placed display. She was glad she had never been assigned to anything but toys at Frankenburg's. 

Carol frowned slightly when Therese turned away. 

 

Carol had been smiling at her all through dinner, and Therese knew this smile as well. It wasn’t the soft smile from earlier. This was Carol’s smile when she had something on her mind. The trouble was, Therese could never tell whether it was good or bad or anything that Carol would bother to tell her at all. Sometimes if she asked about it, Carol would talk openly. Other times, she’d remain closed off and Therese would end up feeling bad for asking.

Therese figured that if it was important enough, Carol would bring it up as they were getting ready for bed later. She gave her own smile and looked back down at her plate. Carol had stopped eating and was breathing deeply, Therese watching her chest rise and fall hypnotically. 

She studied Therese a second more with hungry eyes. 

“Did you find anything you liked at the store earlier?” Carol asked, folding her hands under her chin and leaning forward. She observed Therese from the bottom of her eyelids, looking down on her. The light caught her jawline spectacularly, Therese noted, the shape carved out by shadows. 

Therese thought of the red lace, how she imagined the silk would've felt against her skin. She shrugged. “Not really.” She pushed her food around with her fork.

“Well, what about that garter set? The red one.” Carol prompted. She tucked her hair behind her ear, Therese’s eyes following the manicured nails as they pushed back the blonde curls. She felt her face warming.

“Oh, that?” She laughed nervously, a blush rising in her cheeks. “I don’t know. It was nice, I suppose. I just didn’t particularly need it. Sister Alicia always said that extravagance was a vice.” She said, focusing on the piece of food she had been working around on the plate and praying that Carol wouldn’t notice how red she was. She did, of course.

A blonde eyebrow arched up, a low hum of amusement accompanying it. Carol’s smile shifted to one side, her red lips now forming more of a lewd smirk. She rose from her chair, fetching a black gift box from her purse. It was tied with a pink ribbon bearing the store’s name. Therese's heartbeat threatened to break her ribs as Carol stalked over to stand behind her, the click of each step echoing throughout the apartment. She dropped the box onto the table in front of her, gripping Therese’s shoulder and stroking the side of her neck with her thumb possessively, leaning in close until her lips brushed Therese’s ear. She shuddered, breath bated in anticipation. Therese kept her eyes trained on the box but savored each moment of contact, their past nights of carnality bursting forth in her mind for only a second before igniting and burning away as she herself was burning. Therese was suddenly conscious of her pulse throbbing in every vein as Carol pressed her lips to the spot where her jaw formed a sharp angle with her neck, the kiss softening her as she tilted her head to give Carol access.

“Oh but darling…”  She slid her hand down to squeeze Therese's arm. “The trouble is, I like to indulge you.” Carol breathed out. “It’s not a vice if  _ I’m _ indulging you.” Her grip on Therese’s arm shifted, her fingernails trailing down the pale skin to her hand and leaving goosebumps in their wake. “And I would particularly like to see you in it.” Carol's voice was harsh in the most alluring way, and Therese knew it was more of a command than a suggestion. The rough squeeze to her wrist before strutting off down the hall jolted Therese into an incredulous haze. 

She just sat there at the table, at a loss for words or actions or coherent thought. She felt a little dazed, a little dumbfounded; a little buzzing all over and breathless. 

So it was to be one of  _ those _ nights. 

She had yet to open the box and was harboring a doubt that Carol had actually purchased the lingerie. It seemed more likely that she was having an elaborate dream, and that she'd sit up in bed any moment now drenched in sweat and panting, with Carol slumbering peacefully beside her. Peaceful, and painfully unaware of the fire that she was so easily able to kindle in the very center of Therese’s stomach. She steadied herself on the edge of the table, the box still there in front of her. 

She untied the ribbon slowly and it fell to the floor with an air of finality. She slid the top of the box off and gingerly unfolded the wrapping paper to reveal the scarlet lace she had yearned for. It was weightless in her hands. The fabric was deliciously smooth. 

Against her pale skin, the lace’s hue was as stark as blood against white tile. And yet instead of a crime scene, Therese felt as if she were a sort of garden, and she herself a flower near bursting with color. The silk and lace laid on her thin frame as nothing she owned had before. She had never owned anything so expensive before, she rationalized, because wasn't it usually that quality and fit correlated with price? 

Whatever the reason, it was tight in just the right places and confirmed beyond anyone's doubts that yes, she did indeed have some semblance of a figure. Marveling at the sight presented in the floor length bathroom mirror before her, Therese saw for the first time a young woman instead of a mousy girl. 

Not quite like Carol, but certainly not the same girl who had spent months in a tiring one sided chase with Richard so long ago. She was more herself now, every part colored in vividly as opposed to the greyish wash of a person she had been before.

And besides that, she felt sexy. Like one of those pinup girls, those secret pictures that boys always tried to hide. And she understood why. It had been one of the first times she doubted her feelings for Richard, when the corner of the magazine had been sticking out from under his bed. The girl on the cover had been wearing something similar, although her lace had been pink. She was spread on a bed, one hand placed demurely on her hip. Her manicured nails laid on top of an expanse of milky white skin, and Therese's first thought was not dismay at finding such material but rather a longing to know what that skin felt like; to run her hands down the legs that stretched on so lithely. Her mouth had gone dry at the sight of the pert breasts, and it panicked her. She had shoved the magazine back under the bed and tried to forget the whole thing. 

Now that same feeling flooded Therese as she drank in the sight of her own body. Of course, she recognized it now as the way she felt when she looked at Carol. No words seemed exactly right to describe it, but a few came close. A certain hunger. Lust, even. Mostly desire. She shivered as she ran a finger down the front of the thin lace bra, her nipples immediately responsive. 

Carol tsked from the doorway, fully dressed still with slacks and all, and shaking her head. Therese had not heard her approach. She turned slowly to face the tall blonde. 

“And just what do you think you're doing?” Carol demanded, stepping forward to catch Therese's wrist midair. Therese's mouth hung open, unable to do much but stare at the red nails encircling her thin arm.

“That's rather selfish of you. I buy you pretty things and I don't even get to be the first one to play with you.” She mused. Therese found herself backed against the wall, Carol’s hand pinning her wrist up by her shoulder. One knee madly found its way in between Therese's legs, pressing against her center and eliciting a flood of pleasure accompanied by a groan. Carol laughed darkly. She brought her face in, closer and closer to Therese as her body did the same. Carol was on every inch of her skin, their bodies flush against each other. Her lips ghosted along Therese's neck and jaw, coming so close to contact yet remaining a hair's breadth away. Therese could feel the warmth of her breathing, wanted for them to breathe together and to close the distance between lips. Their noses were almost touching, but Carol paused. She looked Therese directly in the eyes. Their close quarters made for no aversion, no choice but for Therese to face the grey light that was darkened by lust. Carol smirked, another laugh escaping at how flustered Therese was. Therese feared that the heat between them would ignite, her skin searing beneath Carol. With their chests pressed together, each woman felt the other’s heartbeat dancing in an echo of her own. 

Not pulling away for an instant, Carol tucked a piece of Therese's hair back, letting her fingertips linger on the soft skin of her neck. “That's not very fair for me now, is it? That I have to wait all by myself with you in here looking so marvelous?”

She practically hissed each letter as she ground her hips against Therese's lace clad form. Therese was utterly weak to resist. When Carol took a step back, the loss of contact was jarring. Therese whimpered desperately for the familiar hands that retracted their hold, wanting them to be not on Carol's hips but her own. Carol shot her a stern look, silencing her. She stood there staring at Therese, her eyes searching every fraction of skin and lingering longer than would be considered decent in a few key areas. But really, everything about the situation was deliciously indecent- Therese realized she was still leaning against the wall and took a step forward to stand straight, only to be stopped by a single finger raised in the air. 

           “No,” Carol started. “I want to look at you.” She raked her eyes down Therese's body more voraciously than Therese herself had. She had never seen Therese looking like this. 

           “I want you to touch me.” Therese started. She tried to be bold, really she did. Something about the desperation in her voice probably gave her away. Carol crossed her arms and tossed her head back in a laugh that sounded like bells, blonde curls bouncing all over the place. 

           “Oh, my angel.” She grinned again, stepping forward to place her hands on Therese's shoulders. “How could I ever say no to you?” She said. Therese had thought she could never feel more impatient, and yet like a hundred times before Carol was proving everything she knew to be false. She said nothing as Carol's fingertips danced lower and lower, tracing a painfully slow path down her stomach. “For now, at least.” Therese was practically shaking as Carol hooked a finger into each of the front garter straps and pulled her forward. She lead that way, dragging Therese from the bathroom to the bedroom by only the red silk. 

           Therese hadn't noticed that she had been holding her breath, she had just assumed that the dizzying feeling had something to do with her elation at the feeling of Carol's lips on her neck as she pressed Therese down onto the bed. Moments later she was aware because she finally was breathing again, and the scent of Carol's perfume was the only thing she could think about as their lips touched at last. She reached a hand upwards to place it on the back of Carol's neck, pulling her down on top of her and deepening the kiss. 

           They stayed that way for a moment, chest to chest again as mouths nipped and sucked hungrily. Therese could feel Carol's lipstick smearing all over her face, and the idea was thrilling- it would be as if she had been marked by their love. As the ache between her legs grew hotter and ever more persistent the kiss became more searching, more desperate. Therese moaned into Carol's mouth, trembling as she began to roll her hips against Carol's. 

           “Carol, please…” Therese broke away for a moment, finding the blonde’s ear. “Please, I need you.” She keened. Carol went into action immediately. 

           “Baby…” she whispered into Therese's ear before gently closing her teeth around her earlobe. Less gentle now, she tugged; she drew out the sounds of pleasure that she knew only came from Therese. She stopped the red lacy hips from moving with a hand placed firmly on each side, pressing Therese firmly into the mattress. Therese gasped as Carol pressed open mouthed, sloppy kisses down her neck, her collarbone, the center of her chest. Lower still and her chest rose and fell shakily, her breathing reduced to ragged panting as Carol's mouth moved across her stomach and stopped when they met the edge of the lace. 

           Carol released her grip on Therese's hips to painstakingly slip her fingers just inside the hem of the crimson lingerie. She looked up at Therese as she began to slide the offending articles down her pale body, a carnal glint in the grey eyes as they were met by helpless brown. First her hips, then her thighs- Carol chased the motion of her hands with more kisses, leaving a trail of lipstick that spelled out to the both of them “in this moment, you are mine.” She never broke eye contact for even a second. 

           Pressing her lips to the apex of where pale thighs met soft, dark curls, Carol placed a hand on each of Therese's knees and spread her legs. She mouthed her way along the inside of her thighs. Therese whimpered as Carol drew closer to her center, nipping gently at the skin while making her way up to where Therese needed her most. With her lips only centimeters away, Carol was intoxicated by Therese's sex. Her softness, the exhilarating aroma of her arousal. Her unmistakable wanton readiness. She paused there, breathing in rhythm with her. Her eyes flicked back up to Therese, intense and burning with desire and that particular smile meaning something was on her mind. An idea. 

           “Close your eyes. And keep them shut.” Carol demanded. Therese did so, reluctantly. She cried out when Carol took her hands away and stood. She was silenced by a finger pressed to her lips while another stroked her cheek. “Do as I say.” 

           Therese gripped the sheets beneath her as she fought to obey, but it took every ounce of self control not to leap after Carol. With her eyes shut every inch of her body was alive as if Carol had sparked an electric current. 

           “Touch yourself, baby. Can you do that for me?” Carol whispered from a new location. She seemed to be slowly circling Therese, and the effect on her was marvelous. She was startled and excited at the same time. 

           “How?” She replied eagerly, wanting to please Carol, wanting to make her feel how she did now. 

           “How would you want me to touch you? Where would you want my hands to go?” She had moved again, closer this time. Therese had no trouble imagining where she'd like Carol's hands, she had been thinking about it for most of the day. 

           “Well, I’d-” 

            “No, darling.” Carol breathed into Therese’s ear unexpectedly, cupping a hand over her mouth to cut her off. She pressed a kiss into Therese's hair, grinning to herself when she felt the hot breath of a sigh on the fingers silencing the girl. Therese jumped slightly as Carol's other hand plucked up her own, from where it had been busy clutching at the sheets to the point where the fabric was all balled up and wrinkled. “Show, don't tell. I want to watch you .” She hissed, dropping Therese's hand on her stomach before leaving the bed once more. 

           When she felt Carol's hand pulling away, Therese's first instinct was to reach out for her, to sit up and pursue- but Carol's intent was clear, and Therese understood. She was to follow directions. She was to control herself. 

           And she was not to open her eyes. 

          How did she want Carol to touch her? How didn't she, was the real question. She could feel Carol watching expectantly from across the room, it was always that odd prickle on the back of her neck. Although this time it was mixed with an anticipation of her own, and she felt as if she were draped in a thick sheet of ardor. 

           Therese unclenched her other fist from where it held the sheets in an iron grip. She dragged one finger in lazy circles around the base of her stomach. A sigh escaped her chest as she relaxed into her own touch. 

           “Oh, come on baby. I know you like it rougher than that.” Carol mused. Therese's lips drew into a smirk, an idea forming as she remembered the night Carol was evidently thinking of. Her fingers continued their circling, slowing as she moved them to the top of her thigh and dug her nails in. The soft gasp was so sudden, so breathlessly raw that Carol felt for a moment like she might melt herself. There was no greater thrill than having Therese whimpering like this. Whimpering for her. Craving her touch, and knowing that she needed her in that way when so many other things in her life were uncertain.  

Therese raked her nails along her skin once more, shivering at the feeling and the thought of the red marks that they might leave- Although she really did prefer it when Carol was the one leaving marks on her. One hand came up to grope her breast. She squeezed the soft mound, toying with the hardened nipple before pinching it roughly. The other hand continued down her thigh, dipping finally in between where her legs met. Therese swiped a finger between slick folds and gently teased the very edge of her entrance. She was suddenly very aware of how hard Carol was breathing. She wished she were allowed to open her eyes, to see the rise and fall of Carol’s chest, to see the flush that always grew over her collar and neck when she was aroused, to see the top buttons of her sheer blouse straining with the effort of each breath. But no, she kept her eyes shut. There would be other times for that. This was about what Carol needed. 

Smirking, Therese withdrew her finger from the steadily growing dampness dripping down her inner thighs. She brought it to her mouth and licked just her fingertip, stopping to leave it lying atop her bottom lip, only barely entering her mouth. The effect it had on Carol was immediate; Therese heard her breathing stop for a moment before swallowing hard. 

“How do you taste darling?” Carol asked, tantalized. 

Therese answered with an impassioned moan, drawing her finger all the way into her mouth and sucking gently. She swirled her tongue around the length of it before pulling it slowly out again, ensuring that it was thoroughly wet. 

Spreading slick folds, she began by just brushing her clit. The soft mound was so sensitive she couldn't help but moan at the brief contact. Therese continued with large, lazy, slow circles all around- just enough to feel good but not enough to be satisfied. Carol’s words from past nights resurfaced in the back of her mind. 

“Oh, don't you dare. You're not supposed to be getting anything out of this. Not yet anyway.”

Therese smiled as she increased her pace, smiled as she thought of how it had made her feel when Carol was stern with her. 

“You wait for me. You don't get to come until I say so.”

She began to writhe a little, gasp a little, groan a little. Therese was close, but she knew what was expected of her without Carol having to say it again. Her eyes were still closed but she envisioned the gesture Carol made as she watched her on the bed- the same gesture she always made. First, her fingers would relax on her thigh where she sat. Carol never realized it, but Therese knew that she was tense and had been digging her nails into her own thigh. After that release, she'd lightly run her hands back and forth over the tops of her slacks. Like someone with sweaty palms trying to gather themselves. Then one hand would rise to hold her necklace for a moment. Mindless fidgeting, of course, but Therese knew the pattern well. Carol was about to give in. The fingers wrapped around the necklace would splay to cover her collarbone, where she'd run a fingernail back and forth. A dry mouth. Heavy breathing. Therese could see it all going down without actually having to see it. 

Therese was panting now as her hips bucked and she began to arch off the bed. Grinding onto her hand, she whimpered. 

“Please Carol,” she moaned out in a tiny voice, “Please.”

She heard Carol exhale with satisfaction. 

“But baby, I need to hear you. Tell me what you need.” Carol purred as she approached the edge of the bed. She rested her hands on Therese's hips, stilling them as she pinned her to the bed again. Therese was still writhing on the sheets beneath her, fingers sliding in and out at an agonizingly slow pace while she rubbed frantically on her clit. 

“I need you!” She cried out, her entire body aching with the building tension. But she had to wait, she had to follow Carol’s orders. Carol leaned forward to place a possessive kiss on the center of Therese's chest. She wrested Therese's hands away from her ministrations and placed another sloppy kiss on the column of her neck when she cried out in response, a wet kiss right below her ear. 

“And what is it exactly that you need from me?” Carol whispered. She nudged her nose into the dark hair that was spread across the sheets beneath Therese's head. She smelled of perfume, sweat, and of passion. 

“I need you inside me.” Therese said shakily. “I need you to fuck me.”

No sooner than the words had left her lips, Carol closed in and captured her mouth in a kiss. Therese was taken by surprise by Carol's tongue forcing its way into her mouth and she forgot Carol’s instructions for a moment, her hands reaching to pull her instinctively closer as she moaned beneath her. 

At the same time, Carol reached down to the messy warmth of Therese's core. She slid one finger slowly in, letting Therese adjust while deepening their kiss. Steadily, the two found their rhythm together- Carol’s hands working in tandem with the roll of Therese’s hips. 

Panting and groaning as Carol picked up her speed, Therese clung tight and tried to bury her face in the corner of Carol’s neck. Forehead resting on Carol’s shoulder, Therese’s breath fluttered in her ear; becoming raspier and more erratic as each thrust brought her closer.

“Look at me Therese.” Carol said. “Don’t you dare finish yet, you don’t want it badly enough.” 

Therese looked deeply into the burning eyes above her and nodded fervently, biting her lip in a futile attempt at self control. And yet as Carol pumped into her and their bodies moved as one, Therese could not stifle her cries of “Please.” They had started quietly, no louder than any breath. Now each sound was rising in octaves. One hand found itself tangled in blonde curls while the other scrambled for purchase on Carol’s back, pushing the silky blouse out of the way to claw at the alabaster skin hiding there.

“I know what you want, my angel, I know. But you’ve got to tell me, I have to hear you ask me.” Carol said, drinking in the enamored way Therese was looking up at her. Her own breathing grew ragged at feeling Therese’s hip rolling up into hers. She dove her head down to bite at her earlobe once more. She tugged quickly and almost came just from the sound that bubbled forth from Therese’s lips. Carol lavished wet, panting, open mouthed kisses all along the column of Therese’s throat.

“Please Carol, please fuck me, I need you to fill me, I need to be fucked, please...” Therese keened, continuing on until the words crashed and tripped over each other.

Carol moaned contentedly, topping it off with a bruising kiss right to the top of Therese’s collarbone.

She slowed her ministrations to an agonizing stop, withdrawing her finger only to add a second one. Carol entered Therese’s slick folds slowly and completely before pulling out again almost as far. She paused, just the tips of her fingers penetrating Therese. 

A singular desperate please was all it took.

Carol slammed deep into her, pounding and massaging the spot that drove her wild and relishing the sharp hiss Therese let out into her ear as she pulled Carol ever closer. Therese’s nails dug into the smoothness of Carol’s back, imprinting the creamy expanse of skin with her raw desire. The hand clasping golden ringlets pulled just the slightest bit; the slightest bit just the way Carol liked it.

Therese was wound up. Tension was building within her like a drop of water on the precipice of falling from the tap. Her mind was in another place, a place in which all that is and ever would be was the feeling of Carol; of Carol inside her and on top of her, of Carol in her arms. Of Carol along every inch of her body, and in that same way every inch of her consciousness. Her body went rigid for just a moment, for the length of time it takes a drop of water to fall, and her mind was called to yet another place where Carol herself was the only thing. A single drop in a pond creating a ripple the way that waves crash against the shore.

She cried out for Carol over and over, the syllables repeating like an invocation said in a mass.

 

There was something decidedly right about the way she fit into Carol’s arms, Therese thought. She could feel, very faintly, Carol’s heart beating beneath her cheek. And really that was the place she felt she fit best, right near her heart. Carol dragged her nails gently up and down Therese’s arm. Easy Living crackled away softly, diffusing the clamor of traffic and the softness of their matched breath in a way that sounded quite pink and warm.

Carol placed a single finger under her chin, tilting her head up to place a tender kiss on the center of Therese’s forehead.

“Happy Valentine’s Day, darling.”


End file.
